The racks of the invention have particular utility for use in storage battery manufacturing processes of the general type, for example, described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,984,255 which issued Oct. 5, 1976 to Ernest Tiegel, Class 204/2.1. As described in the Tiegel patent, large numbers of storage battery plates may be efficiently handled through the various processing steps by placing them in a plurality of portable racks which serve to support and transport the plates through a charging step in which the racks containing the plates are placed in tanks filled with an electrolyte and connected to a source of electrical charging energy, and through subsequent washing and drying steps.
The rack of the present invention has particular utility in such a manufacturing process, as mentioned above. The rack of the invention is formed to have two opposite sides, each of which contains a number of vertical slots, so that the positive and negative battery plates may be successively supported, each extending across the rack, in mutually spaced and parallel relationship. As mentioned above, the lugs of the positive plates are all positioned at one side of the rack, and the lugs of the negative plates are all positioned at the other side of the rack. Both sets of lugs extend upwardly beyond the top of the rack. A first conductive bar is welded to the lugs of the positive plates at one side of the rack, and a second conductive bar is welded to the lugs of the negative plates at the other side of the rack. The bars extend across the top of the rack from one end to the other, and are connected to an appropriate source of direct current charging electric power.
The top and bottom of the rack is open, and the sides have openings therein, so that the electrolyte may freely flow through the rack and into contact with the battery plates. Elongated strips are provided with teeth that fit through the openings on both sides at any selected level. These strips provide a bottom support for the battery plates, so that plates of a variety of heights may be contained in the rack, with their lugs extending beyond the top of the rack a sufficient distance to permit the conductive bars to be welded thereto.
The side members of the rack are coupled to the end members in a tongue-and-groove relationship, and the racks can be easily disassembled, so that end members of different widths can be used so as to accommodate different sized plates within the rack. Also, the fact that the racks can be easily knocked down and set up facilitates the shipment thereof, since they can be shipped in a knocked-down condition in compact shipping containers.